Civil Aviation Act heads to parliament

Government is seeking to amend the existing civil aviation law to bring it up to speed with international standards, the Minister of Transport Dzifa Attivor has said.

The current legal framework has been called into question by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) of the United States. The FAA wants a review of the law to incorporate certain key modern regulations governing civil aviation in the country.

Ms. Attivor acknowledged the need for a review, saying: "One of the requirements of the FAA for Ghana to regain its Category-one status was to amend the civil aviation laws. We will soon send the Act to Parliament for amendment".

The loss of the Category- one status has meant that no Ghanaian-registered carrier can operate flights directly between Accra and the US - a route currently monopolised by Delta Airlines and characterised by high demand and relatively high fares. It also means there are some lapses in the country's civil aviation regime, and that it does not meet the International Civil Aviation Organisation's (ICAO) standards.

One of the key changes expected is ratification of the Cape Town Convention. The Convention is a treaty designed to facilitate asset-based financing and leasing of aviation equipment, expand financing opportunities, and reduce costs; thereby providing substantial economic benefits.

It does so by reducing a creditor's risk and by enhancing legal predictability in these transactions, including in case of a debtor's insolvency or other default. The Cape Town Convention entered into force in 2006.

However, Ghana is yet to ratify the convention - a situation that the airline says is inimical to the growth of domestic aviation.

Passengers are expected to benefit from approval of the Cape Town Convention, with improved service and increased capacity on all four domestic routes - Kumasi, Takoradi, Tamale, and Sunyani.

Abdullai Alhassan, Director General of the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA). said "we expect that the Cape Town Convention will be ratified soon to allow our airlines acquire bigger equipment at a much more affordable cost.

"We have asked domestic operators to acquire bigger equipment with all the necessary facilities to provide the kind of service that persons with special needs require. However, we are waiting for ratification of the Cape Town Convention to enable them to acquire the needed equipment."

The issue of disabled passengers has become topical in recent times, with the Ghana Society for Physically Disabled taking the industry regulator GCAA and all domestic airlines to court following a refusal of boarding to one of its members.

GSPD asked the court to order GCAA and all domestic operators to comply with Section 28 (1) of the Persons with Disability Act, 2006 (Act 715).

The case is being settled out of court between the parties concerned.

Section 28 (1) of the Act sates that: "The Civil Aviation Authority and any other authority responsible for the management of a port shall provide facilities that will aid the movement of a person with disability at the port".

However, given the type of equipment domestic airlines operate in this growing market, they are unable accommodate all persons with physical challenges.

Starbow's Chief Executive Officer, Mr. James Eric Antwi, believes that it is time to ratify the convention so as to allow operators acquire efficient wide- bodied aircraft at a cheaper cost to reduce their cost of operation and meet needs of the travelling public.

There are currently two airlines - Starbow and Africa World Airlines - offering domestic flights from Accra to Kumasi, Tamale, and Takoradi. The operators have had to increase their flight frequencies to these three destination following the suspension of Antrak's operations for three months.

Antrak Air, a wholly-owned indigenous domestic operator, has suspended its operations for the next three months due to operational challenges.